1. What’s your leadership mantra in the fast-evolving tech landscape?
Change is the only constant in the tech industry, therefore as a Leader my mantra is to make way forward with clear focus for my team and all stake holders involved at the same time always being curious and adapting to new trends, tools and consumer behaviour in this dynamic market.
2. How do you inspire and motivate your team during a challenging time ?
By reminding them why and where we started from. I always keep the big picture visible, while being honest with everyone about short-term hurdles. My team always contributes to my decision making and solutions. When people feel trusted and heard, they rise. A quick ‘thank you’ or ‘well done’ goes a long way too.
3. In an era of AI and automation, how do you see the role of human leadership evolving?
Human leadership will shift from being task-focused to meaning-focused. As machines take on execution, leaders need to create culture, empathy, ethical guardrails, and purpose. The emotional intelligence gap will become a competitive advantage.
4. Tell us about a major screw-up in your career—what went wrong and what did you learn?
Early on, we launched Thomson & Kodak in TV category without validating market readiness. We did really well in terms of numbers but we realised with time that we must evolve the technology, innovation and keep on learning that timing and user insight matter the most and catering to the different segments of consumers out there in the market. Since then, I’ve embraced customer feedback and market dynamics early and often.
5. What’s a mistake you see many young tech entrepreneurs making?
Firstly hats off to the young tech entrepreneurs in India who are not just building innovative solutions but doing so with a sharp understanding of local consumer behaviour, price sensitivity, and the power of digital-first strategies—they’re truly redefining what it means to build for Bharat. Having said that many focus too much on fundraising and MVPs, and not enough on customer empathy. Tech isn’t just about what you can build—it’s about what people actually need. Also, trying to scale too soon without stress-testing the model often leads to burnout or breakdown.
6. How do you handle failure, and how do you encourage a failure-friendly culture?
I treat failure like data and insights. We look at what didn’t work, why it didn’t, and what is the learning out of it. Internally, I take the responsibility for any failure, I share my own misses and create room for experimentation. Progress in tech is impossible without permission to fail fast and learn faster.
7. What’s the next big disruption you foresee in the tech industry?
That’s my favourite question and what has caught everyone’s attention lately. From my perspective, we’re on the edge of “Ambient AI”—tech that fades into the background and becomes intuitively integrated into daily life, from voice-driven workflows to predictive UI to emotion-sensitive automation.
8. How do you unplug from the tech world? Or do you? Any non-negotiable habits?
That discipline is very important. I do social media detox by deleting all social media apps when my screen time goes up and my recently acquired love for long walks and meditation. My non-negotiable habit that I’ve picked up recently is at least an hour a day without screen, no calls or emails, just meditate. That time keeps me grounded.
9. What books that changed your perspective on leadership & Technology?
- “The Hard Thing About Hard Things” by Ben Horowitz – raw, real, and full of lessons.
- “Team of Teams” by Gen. Stanley McChrystal – brilliant for understanding modern leadership agility.
- “The Innovator’s Dilemma” by Clayton Christensen – still relevant, maybe more than ever.
10. Podcasts and inspiring quotes that you want to recommend our readers
- Raj Shamani’s podcast – he brings such a fresh perspective on ambition, hustle, and the Indian startup ecosystem.
- The Musafir Series – great for stories of unsung heroes from the armed forces.
- Puliyabaazi – an insightful take on Indian politics, policy, and tech in the local context.
- Inside Line F1 Podcast – For sports talk!